The Power of Adaptability: Lessons from Ilana Golan

[00:00] Get that Amex Gold card ready. I'm too tired to cook. We feeling Five Guys or the Cheesecake Factory? Both. Earn up to $120 a year in statement credits of participating partners. Up to $10 each month when you pay with the Amex Gold card. Learn more at AmericanExpress.com slash Explore-Gold. Enrollment required. Terms apply. Looking for more than just a job? Brightview Senior Living is opening Brightview North Facts in Fairfax, Virginia. And we're hiring across all departments. From dining and caregiving to maintenance, sales, and leadership. This is your chance to be part of something from the very beginning. [00:30] At Brightview North Facts, you'll find a team that supports you, values you, and a career that can grow with you. Text BVJOBS to [redacted phone] or visit careers.brightviewseniorliving.com to apply. [00:55] Well, that's what happened with my great friend today, Alana Golan, and we're going to talk through IQ. [01:01] and EQ, emotional intelligence has been a thing. Well, what about your AQ? [01:06] that adaptability quotient. And if your AQ isn't strong in 2026, you're going to struggle. We're going to break that down at the end in our rapid fire top five. And then we're going to find out the one word that defines your legacy. Ladies and gentlemen, I present my good friend, the leader's leader. [01:23] Ms. Alana Hulani. [01:26] You're listening to Mick Unplugged, hosted by the one and only Mick Hunt. This is where purpose meets power and stories spark transformation. Mick takes you beyond the motivation and into meaning, helping you discover your because and becoming unstoppable. I'm Rudy Rush, and trust me, you're in the right place. Let's get unplugged.

[01:50] Alana, how you doing today, dear? [01:52] Oh, my God. Can you always introduce me wherever I go? I'm going to have a Nick coming with me to introduce me. Thank you so much. So great to be here. [02:01] No, I am the honored one. Thank you so much for, for taking the time. I know how busy you are, so I know you just don't do things to do them. So this is why I have goosebumps because. [02:12] Been a huge fan of you. [02:14] Um, [02:15] Honestly, since like... [02:18] Over a year ago, when like our podcasts were like beside each other, like all the time. And I was like, oh, who's this podcast that I keep getting recommended that I should listen to? [02:28] And then I started listening and I was like, [02:31] wait, this podcast is amazing. And so like literally from episode one, [02:36] So what are you at, like, 141 now, 142? Like, I literally have listened to every single one of them, and most of them I've listened to twice. So... [02:48] Thank you for being here, dear. Oh, my God. That makes my day, Mick. And I obviously listen to you as well. And I loved Unplugged. So let's go. And I hope to add a ton of value to your listeners. [02:59] Because if you're on this podcast, then... [03:02] You know, you know what's coming. So it's going to be gold. So let's go. [03:06] let's go, let's go, let's go. I know you're going to bring it. And you know how I like to start it. [03:11] And I know a little bit about this, but we get to go deeper. [03:15] I want to know, Alana, with all the amazing things that you do, [03:19] from helping entrepreneurs to helping leaders become better.

[03:24] What's your because? What's that deeper purpose that you have to do all that you do? Because honestly, at the end of the day, Alana, you don't have to do the things that you do. There's a purpose behind it. What's your because? I love that question. And you know that, Mick. And it's interesting because... [03:40] You. [03:42] actually opened my eyes to the idea because that's kind of all happened when I was listening to your podcast. Right. And initially I was just like, well, I just want to help people. I want to feel like I'm making a difference. It's, you know, and it's true. Like, [03:57] losing my identity, feeling stuck in my career was one of the hardest moments in my life. And if I can help somebody. [04:04] get out of that unstuck and feel accomplished in the better version of themselves. That is my mission. However, you lit my eyes that there's a deeper sense of it. And when I was reflecting on it, and my biggest reflection always comes when I hike, and I realized that it was that moment where I, [04:23] And I think I told you that story. I held my... [04:26] mom's hand and she was passing from cancer. [04:30] And I remember trying to ask her if she has regrets. [04:35] And I couldn't ask. I I I felt ashamed or I didn't want to admit that that we lost the fight. You know, I was so hungry to fight for her and to win. And I'm not used to, you know, giving up like and I realized that she's I don't have a chance. Like she's going she has a week or two to, you know, to live. And.

[04:56] And I remember thinking, like, what are the regrets? What are the regrets? And when she passed... [05:01] not feeling regret. [05:05] became so prevalent for some reason. And that became my fuel. That became... [05:12] my, [05:13] Because so and that. [05:15] you know, basically lit a fire under me because you're right. I don't have to do what I do. [05:21] My husband is cycling and in, you know, in all these countries and he keeps like, let's retire together. And I'm like, I'm not ready for it. I. [05:29] I I'm on this planet for a bigger purpose and I have to do this. So. [05:34] That's it. Love it. [05:36] I love it. And [05:38] Alana, again, being such a huge fan of yours, like, [05:41] This episode, I'm going to ask a whole bunch of just personal questions, not personal questions, but personal questions that I want answered because... [05:49] Like you are someone that I look to, [05:51] for advice. You are that person that I'm like, there's synergy. You're [05:56] I know that like Alana has resources on this or that you've gone through this and, [06:02] One of the things that I love, and for those that don't know, I'm going to kind of highlight this a little bit. [06:07] This journey kind of started for you. [06:10] You just raised money. [06:11] Right. [06:12] One of your companies that you were starting with a co-founder, everything's going well. And then one day you get kicked out of your own company. So, yeah. [06:23] My first question, [06:25] How in the heck do you get kicked out of your own company?

[06:30] Oh, Meg, this is such a humbling experience. And, you know, and I always say to people like you can talk. [06:39] on any kind of like, I love vulnerability, but the truth is you can only only be vulnerable when you're from the scars, not from the wound. And if you would have asked me this a decade ago, I could not talk about it. [06:52] Like I was so embarrassed. I was so ashamed. And you're right. So basically we lived the Silicon Valley dream. Like I live here in Silicon Valley right across my fence is the Steve Jobs basement. This is where he started. You know, like, I mean, I'm covered with this like incredible Silicon Valley vibe. [07:11] So at that point, I was already vice president in a very successful company. I literally built it from [07:18] you know, buying the printer and the router to, you know, this mega five sites, multimillion dollar deals like it was incredible. But I was burned out. I was tired. I was flying every week. And then a friend of mine, somebody I knew for 20 years said, hey, let's start this company together. [07:33] And I got lit up again, like I was just so excited. So even though I was busy, like I was working on this thing day and night and I was so excited and we did this whole Silicon Valley thing. We went to visit investors. [07:46] And it was incredible because our story was so good. [07:49] that within a few weeks, there was a term sheet, they were valuating a little baby at $5 million. So they were, you know, investing about $800,000. [07:59] And it was three prominent Silicon Valley. It wasn't even just one.

[08:02] And I remember like, oh, my God, I'm so lucky. How did I get so lucky? And so during the goodbye party, I told everybody about the startup. I was so proud about the money we raised. [08:12] And within 24 hours, Mick, 24 hours, [08:16] My co-founder decided to take the money to his bank, throw me out of the business, and I was left with nothing. No business. [08:23] job, no salary, no startup, no investment. So, [08:26] You're asking, how is that possible? The truth is it's ignorance. I didn't have somebody to tell me what to do. I didn't know that I need to put a founder's agreement. I didn't know I need to put things in rules. Like I... [08:38] You know, it was all kind of like excitement and doing things and like hustling and creating stuff. And then. [08:45] Yeah. And I think one of the things that you raise is like that embarrassment of how on earth did I let that happen? [08:53] And, you know, one of the hardest thing about this moment is that your ego just comes crushing down like you. [09:00] Like, who am I without that identity? Who am I without my title? Who am I without my company? Like, who is Ilana? And to make it even worse, I didn't know where I want to go. [09:10] So now I'm I look all confused and I go to all these, you know, like events and people are like, Ilana, who are you? Tell you know, it's like, I don't know. What do you do? I don't know. What do you want to do? I don't know. You know, like. [09:21] Who am I, Mick? Anyway, so that was my story. No, I love it. And there's two things I think are important. [09:30] Here, wine. [09:31] For everybody that's listening,

[09:33] that's an entrepreneur, that's in a partnership, [09:36] Make sure your paperwork protects you. Make sure you review the paperwork like we all do it at some point. [09:45] Like even now, one of my companies is with one of my really good friends. But the first thing that we did was make sure the paperwork was right. [09:53] his attorney reviewed, my attorney reviewed, and then we had a separate attorney [09:58] that didn't know either of us draw up the actual agreement, right? Because... [10:04] We didn't want to feel a certain type of way. [10:08] Then the second thing that I think is important that you said is, [10:11] was that you had an ego. [10:14] And I think people try to say, oh, I don't have an ego. [10:18] We all do. [10:19] We all have some type of pride, some type of emotion. It doesn't mean that you have a big ego. [10:24] But I think everyone has that sense of pride and to lose that, right? [10:29] It's tough. Is that right, Alana? [10:31] Yes, Mick. But can I I'm going to be honest, I think when you tick some of these boxes of success in corporates as a VP running some big things. [10:41] I kind of have bigger ego than I should. And I think that confuses you. [10:46] Again, I was, you know, I do believe I was a great leader. I hear it from my, you know, people all the time. And they're still in touch with people that reported to me. [10:55] But I didn't realize that when you're trying to do something you've never done before, [11:02] You don't know what you don't know.

[11:04] And to make it even worse, [11:06] The worst part is actually not what you don't know that you don't know. It's what you absolutely sure you know, but you know wrong. [11:14] And I was absolutely sure that I will know how to start a company. And I was absolutely wrong, Mick. [11:24] But... [11:25] But you got up, though. [11:27] Right. I know that there was a moment that you were down on yourself. There was a moment you didn't leave the house. You didn't leave the bedroom. You didn't do whatever. [11:34] But you did get up. [11:35] And when you got up, Alana, you freaking took over the world, right? Like that fire that you have, that passion that you have. [11:42] that thing that and these are the words of Mick and Mick only but that [11:47] That thing that makes Alana exceptional, the one thing that I think, [11:51] Alana Golan has the... [11:53] that most people don't. [11:55] is that grit, but that grit with purpose, right? Like there's a lot of people that have the fight, that have the grit, but you did it with purpose. [12:05] And then you became the person that you were supposed to be. Is that right? [12:08] Yeah. [12:09] Yeah, it was incredible. And that's also a reminder to people listening because... [12:15] you will make mistakes. Yes, I didn't know about the founder's agreement. I made a lot of mistakes, but the truth is, [12:22] Thank God I didn't have a founder's agreement because I would have been stuck [12:27] in this minutiae thing that actually went down, it basically exploded a few months later.

[12:35] And instead, I had to lean into... [12:40] figuring things out. And that became my purpose. That became my mission. That became Leap Academy. That became [12:46] everything I do now. So to some extent, [12:49] A reminder to everybody, your darkest moment is, [12:53] Again, it's always darkest before sunrise. And it's very, very likely that this is your teaching moment to [13:00] actually reflect and actually [13:02] put you on a journey that will change the second part of your life. So the question is not why is this happening to me, but what should I learn from it? And who am I becoming because of this? And I think that's just such a powerful thing. [13:16] I love it. And so I'm going to do something I never do. [13:19] live. So, [13:22] This segment that we're about to go to is brought to you by Leap Academy. So everybody right now go to leapacademy.com. [13:31] Because we're going to talk about Leap Academy, why you decided to start it, and what Leap Academy is doing to impact the lives of others. So, Leap Academy with Alana Gold. [13:41] Wow, I'm honored. So again, the idea, the mission of Leap Academy is to take driven professionals that want more for themselves or individuals that want more for themselves or feel stuck or know that there's more to them. [13:56] and really understand that clarity, understand who they are, what their story is, [14:02] how to build that brand, how to open the right doors so that they can either land the right opportunity for themselves or switch to a new industry.

[14:09] or switch to a new function or start a business. [14:12] Because, [14:13] again, I wanted to gain the income, the reputation, the balance, the impact that they deserve to have and live the best version of themselves. And [14:22] And the beautiful thing is like, we, you know, we, we talked a little bit before the show, like, [14:27] In the future of work, [14:30] So reinventing yourself, leaping again and again is becoming the most important skill for you right now. [14:37] And people will reinvent themselves every year. People don't realize it. Even if you're in the same corporate job, you're going to switch functions. You're going to switch technologies. You're going to switch... [14:48] You know, responsibility is like you're going to change all the time. If you're a business owner, you're going to adapt all the time. So adaptability is the most important skill. [14:57] And I can't stress it enough. So if you're going to learn how to do it again and again, you can create a portfolio of things and ventures of income. [15:04] that will change the rest of your life and create not just the paycheck, but the life that you want with the paycheck. [15:09] That is one minute about leap Academy. Let's go. I love it. I love it. I love it so much. [15:17] Alano, you have a statement... [15:21] a saying and I've said it a thousand times as well and ironically [15:26] One of my programs, [15:29] It's how the video starts. And it starts with something that you also say. [15:34] Success? [15:35] leaves clues. [15:37] Right. So talk about talk about success. But more importantly, how do people pick up on the clues that success leaves?

[15:45] oh that's such an important thing because for me one of the hardest thing [15:50] was not having that clarity of what's next, what's next, what's next. There's so much on the menu these days. [15:56] So many options that people don't even know. [15:59] And nobody teaches you, right? So how do you find among all these options, the days of, [16:04] Me being in one place for 40 years... [16:07] is gone. So in that case, how do I find what's next? Like, who's going to teach me? And the interesting thing is when I was trying to figure out my zone of genius, [16:17] What was interesting is that we tend to look only at like, [16:22] skills or things that we learn in the university. [16:25] But that's actually usually not going to be where your zone of genius is. [16:30] And when you actually look at your zone of genius, it's going to be a way broader. First of all, there's, you know, the because, right? Your why and your because, right? Like, what is that fuel? But on top of this, it's like, what are people already intrigued by you? What are people already coming to you from? What are the things that lighten you up and get you excited? And again, like you said, and there's like a list of things that we do with people that [16:54] that to actually understand their zone of genius, [16:57] Because again, when you find it and you can lean into it, it's incredible what, you know, how it's going to fuel you in a whole different way. [17:05] And maybe I'll say one more thing. I think, you know, in the startup world, again, after that horrible pandemic, [17:12] down moment that I had. I did start a tech startup. I did sell it. I did, you know, start it. So, but what I, you know, and I started mentoring and some of the biggest startup accelerators in the world. And I'll share why I'm saying this.

[17:24] And it was like things like Google, you know, Accelerator and Singularity University and Catering Bell and et cetera. [17:30] And one of the things that people don't realize in startup world, you experiment with, [17:35] finding market fit all the time. You experiment, experiment, experiment. Like, where should I go? Where should I go? [17:40] And people don't realize that they can actually use that in a career-related way. [17:45] arena, right? And you can actually experiment, is this my zone of genius? Is this what I want to do? [17:50] And if you actually experiment, you can move so much faster and with so much more clarity because the clarity will come from action. [17:57] Not just ideas, not just dreaming about it, thinking about it. Like it's going to come from that action and that conviction that you're going to build along the way. [18:05] down. [18:05] wholeheartedly. [18:07] And I want to go deeper into... [18:10] the zone of genius. [18:11] I know it's something that you spend a lot of time when you're working with your clients on and at the academy you and your coaches spend a lot of time helping people identify it so. [18:21] For the person that's listening or watching right now, [18:25] That's like, [18:26] You know, I'm good at a few things. [18:28] But how do I find my zone of genius? How do I connect? [18:32] with that thing or those couple of things that I do exceptionally. [18:36] What's the advice you have for them? [18:38] Oh, such a good question. So first of all, I will say, [18:41] that many, many, many times, like I said, a jar cannot read its own label. [18:47] And leaning on somebody else to kind of share some of their perspective. Again, not in a beautiful setting and people that are positive in the world, right? Like don't take their victimhood. But, you know, it's good to listen to what are people saying.

[19:01] saying about you. You know, for me, it was like suddenly I realized that some of the recommendations on LinkedIn that I had, [19:08] put in words things that I didn't even think of. [19:12] Right. Or some of the thank you, thank you that people will send you in messages or people will come and say, hey, Lana, do you have. [19:18] a few minutes, I want to talk to you. And the interesting thing about it is people will already hint you. [19:25] kind of what we said, success leaves clues, people will already hint to you, [19:28] what they're intrigued by you. [19:32] And the question is, I don't know if I, you know, the question is, what is that? [19:37] What are those moments? [19:38] And for me, it's really about really distilling it to... [19:44] What are those pieces? [19:46] that actually makes me unique? What makes me different? What are people already, you know, like, [19:52] drawn to me [19:54] And what makes me excited again? And again, I think the truth is you will not necessarily know one thing. [20:01] until you start doing it, get clarity, get more conviction, more like it's not that I knew I want to start Leap Academy. I didn't know I want to grow this thing to a multi, multi million like. [20:11] That's not how things start. I think there's also a little confusion about, [20:16] you'll suddenly know and you'll be passionate about it. And, you know, things will just be so easy. [20:23] And the truth is, I don't think that's the case. I think that's a myth. [20:28] And you don't have the conviction or the evidence that,

[20:32] to know that this is the thing yet. [20:34] Because you didn't build this yet. [20:36] So I think there's a little bit of how do I just take one step further and, [20:42] And again, I'm going to look at that 10, 10, 10. I look at it as... [20:46] 10 days, 10 weeks, 10 month experiments. [20:49] And the way I look at it is for 10 days, let me just pretend like this is what I'm doing, right? Let me read through it. Let me read other people that are doing it. [20:58] Let me see if this lights me up. Let's see if I care about it. And if I do like the 10 days, [21:04] All I need to decide is not, is this going to be my career direction? Because that's a really scary decision. [21:10] But all I need to decide, is this worth it? [21:12] 10 more weeks, for example, right? And if it's worth 10 more weeks, [21:16] Is it worth 10 more months? [21:17] And, you know, when you kind of try to think and distill it, [21:21] it actually lets you off the hook a little bit, right? You don't need to decide this big career direction. [21:28] All you need to do is decide this one thing. [21:30] Is this worth a little more time, a little more investigation, a little more clarity? [21:35] And I think that that takes that [21:38] pressure of just knowing you won't just know you're going to have to build that clarity as you go. [21:46] Love it. [21:47] Love it. [21:48] And Alana, I have to give you kudos for something. I purposely waited for this conversation to tell you. So, [21:55] You know, we talked about [21:57] offline and earlier today about, you know, me starting a podcast. [22:02] One of the things...

[22:05] That was important for me even before the podcast was reinvention. [22:10] And the reason I'm bringing this up to you now is, [22:13] And this is before you even had a podcast. [22:16] I knew you were really... [22:18] One of your pillars. [22:20] One of the things that you pride yourself on is the reinvention. [22:24] And so when my kids would tell me, dad, when we Google you, [22:29] All it shows is the insurance stuff that you do. [22:31] And unfortunately, that's not sexy and that's not cool. [22:35] Like all the things that you do with your friends and your mentors and your buddies and like how funny you are, like people need to see that side of you. And I'm like, no. [22:44] I'm on LinkedIn and LinkedIn. I wasn't even on Instagram at this point, right? I'm just, I'm a LinkedIn guy. And on LinkedIn, it's business Mick and business Mick only. And my kids were like, but dad. [22:54] You're going to miss the boat. [22:56] So I reinvented myself, but I didn't know how. [22:59] To really do it. [23:00] But you have a great framework. [23:03] And I'd love for you to just spend a moment because I don't want to talk about it because I won't do it the right service. [23:08] But I needed to give you kudos for helping me reinvent this. [23:13] Um, [23:14] The person that my kids, my friends, and my family knew that I was, but like nobody else in the world knew any of the things that I was doing, but I followed your framework. So talk to us about the importance of. [23:26] of reinventing yourself because i know there's someone that's listening or watching right now that's like [23:32] Yeah, I need to start reinventing myself because in today's age, if you if you haven't reinvented yourself in the last three years, you have to today. So the floor is yours. You made my day, Mick. This makes me so happy because it's really important for me that every single person we're going to have tens of millions of people that are going to need to reinvent themselves. Like, I want everybody to listen to this.

[23:53] podcast and to know how to do this, right? And the very first thing is you're going to have to know [24:00] what you want to do, like the clarity piece is really, really important. And that's where the zone of genius. This is where the experimentation comes in. [24:07] Because otherwise, what happened to me in the past [24:10] is when I had no clue what I wanted to do, I was becoming a red flag. Like I still remember the day when I met the CEO that could have opened any doors for me. He was also a venture capitalist. [24:21] And it took him five minutes to say, Lana, you have no clue where you want to go. Right. And I'm like, oh, darn. So not only that I'm not doing myself a service, I'm actually becoming a red flag. [24:32] So the clarity is number one. It's so, so, so important that you'll know what's next. [24:38] even if it's a test, even if it's an experiment, but you know what you want to do. [24:42] Then you're going to want to line the story according to where you're going, not where you are today. Now, it's with complete integrity. We're not lying here, right? But we're emphasizing the right things. [24:52] according to where you're going. Because again, if I want to build [24:55] LEAP Academy to one of the most incredible reinvention schools and portfolio career schools in the world. [25:02] I can't talk about all the cool algorithms that I was writing in Intel. Nobody cares. [25:08] That just doesn't care. So I need to emphasize the right things and the right stories and the right points. [25:15] And then, yes, it is about building a brand because especially now in the lack of trust economy, [25:21] Your brand is your currency. [25:23] Your brand is the only insurance policy you have. Gary Vee said that, like he said it better than I do. Like, it's incredible. This is what I'm going to allow you to leap again and again.

[25:33] Now, on top of this, I will say all the coolest opportunities and for mid to late stage career, especially when it's crowded, if you do want to land a job, if you do want opportunities. [25:44] All the coolest things are only the hidden market. [25:47] It's who knows you that will bring opportunities to you. That's the fast track. [25:52] So if you want the fast track, if you want a lot of opportunities, if you want to play in the hidden market, this is where the portfolio career is. This is where the advising, the board seat, the co-founding teams, the executive things, the investment opportunities, the leadership retreats, right? Like it's all in the hidden market. [26:10] And if you're not playing in the hidden market, [26:12] And your brand is not aligned with the opportunities that you want to get. You're not going to get the right opportunity. [26:17] So it's the clarity, the story, the branding, the hidden market. And when you actually play those games and you leap again and again and again, [26:24] your life changes forever. You will never like people around you will say, oh, my God, what happened? [26:29] And that's just the most incredible thing. [26:31] feeling in the world because you can inspire, you become the role model that you're meant to be. You can build the life that you want. It's just incredible. [26:40] So, yeah. [26:41] I believe you. [26:43] And I know that. But there's somebody that's listening or watching right now. [26:47] that saying to themselves, or they may be saying it out loud, [26:50] Alana, that's awesome. [26:52] But I'm comfortable right now. [26:54] I'm comfortable, I'm okay. [26:57] And I know that my good friend, Alana Golan, is going to tell you comfort kills dreams. Right. So so how does that person that's comfortable, they know they need to reinvent themselves. They know they need to take themselves serious as a brand.

[27:11] How do they go from comfort to, [27:14] to having that courage muscle [27:17] to actually do the thing. [27:19] That's such a beautiful question. I will say a few things. [27:24] First of all, we're living in a time that the pace of change [27:29] is absolutely mind-blowing. [27:32] There is no comfortable. [27:33] There is no staying stuck. [27:35] If you're not moving forward, [27:37] at the pace of change, at least, and leaping again and again, you will fall behind. You will lose relevance at a pace you don't even realize how fast that is. [27:48] Now, with all respect to somebody comfortable, ageism exists. [27:52] People are seeing less and less opportunities as they age out. [27:57] And if you don't start and getting like creating a safety net, but beyond that, [28:04] It's really not about just the pay. It's really about the life that you're trying to create with that paycheck. [28:10] So I don't believe you're comfortable. I believe that maybe you're not dreaming big enough and that's okay. [28:16] But in order to dream bigger, you will have to start creating a, [28:21] a big action and to take action [28:24] is everything. But I will say one more thing, Mika. I think people don't realize the era that we're in, and I think it's important to talk about it for a second, [28:32] And maybe you talk a little bit about it in your show, I remember, but [28:35] You know, like about 40 years ago, whatever, we were kind of in the era of IQ. Right. And we talk about right intelligence. Right. We would do these tests. And if you were smart and you had good IQ, then, you know, you would be a successful person. And about a few decades ago, it was switched to EQ, to emotional intelligence. You talk a lot about it. And I think Richard Branson was one of the first ones to say EQ is actually more important than IQ. And that gave a green light to a lot of leaders, a lot of founders like

[29:05] You know, suddenly because I didn't have the highest IQ, I was never the highest student. Like, that's not it. Right. [29:11] But if you get a search today and people are listening, if you're searching for today, [29:16] The skill that is most important right now is AQ, adaptability quotient. [29:22] And if you don't build that adaptability, your ability to reinvent and leap is actually becoming the most important skill for the future of work. [29:31] And it is happening right now in front of our faces. [29:34] And if you're not starting to create that safety net, if you're not creating your portfolio career, if you're not getting into a habit [29:40] of reinventing again and again and again, you will lose relevant at a pace you've never seen before. [29:47] I... [29:49] freaking love that you just saw me writing adaptability quotient [29:56] We are going to record a whole nother episode and just talk about that. I think, and I'm just going to say this now. [30:05] This is me asking you a question I'll get with your team, but March 11th and 12th. [30:10] I'm doing, I have a leadership series I call Lead Loud. So they're leadership summits. [30:16] In March, I'm doing it with my best friend in the world, Robert Irvine. [30:21] So Robert's going to be there. Mace Curran, Michelle Mace Curran, former F-16 firefighter as well. I know her. [30:30] Joanne Bass, former Master Sergeant of the Air Force, is going to be there, I think.

[30:36] I need Alana Golan. [30:38] On stage to talk about AQ. [30:41] Let's do it. [30:42] I'm putting it out there in the universe. [30:44] If you receive it, you receive it. You just let me know. But... [30:48] We got to talk about it. [30:50] We got to talk about it. [30:52] That sounds amazing. [30:53] Yeah. You know, I could talk to you all day. [30:56] Yeah. [30:57] Definitely. There's so much that I want to ask, but I know [31:01] that you are a very busy human being and you have a lot going on. So [31:06] I'm going to ask you, where can people find and follow you? [31:11] first and foremost. And then, and then I have like five rapid fire questions that I get to have fun with. Where can people find and follow Alana Golan? [31:19] Oh, perfect. So first of all, thank you. Thank you. This was amazing, Mick. They can definitely find us in leapacademy.com. [31:25] We're also going to have a giveaway for you specifically, Mick Unplugged. We want to give them a ton of value. [31:34] So if they go to your link, they actually going to have like a gift from us, like a free training and something you can download. [31:42] And something that you can kind of, we call it the Career 360. It's a way for you to really find that [31:48] that few things that actually are blocking you from being your full potential. It's an incredible assessment. It's going to be for free. Usually we charge for it, but... [31:56] Mick, we're going to give that for you so that you're going to have it for your listeners. We also, I don't know when this is airing, but on February 26, 27, we have our own leadership conference and it's going to be really, really fun. And we're going to have guests like the president of Starbucks speaking and Sam Blankoff, who is like a director in Netflix and Disney of all the biggest companies.

[32:20] shows that you can think of. And we're going to have some amazing speakers. It's going to be really, really fun. [32:25] So it is for people who want to reinvent themselves, build an incredible brand and [32:30] become their best version of themselves. You can also find me on LinkedIn, on Instagram, Ilana Golan. [32:37] I'm all over. [32:39] So Alana. [32:43] Before I get to the top five, [32:45] Um, [32:45] Your event is... [32:47] is February 26th, 27th. [32:50] Right. Yeah. [32:51] Mm-hmm. [32:53] I don't know how much tickets cost, so don't tell me. [32:56] The first... [32:58] Three people. [33:00] That message me. [33:02] AQ. [33:04] Are you more on LinkedIn or Instagram personally? [33:09] Uh, both. [33:10] Thank you. [33:11] It's both. Okay. [33:13] All right, so I'm going to do four then. [33:14] So the first two people... [33:16] That tag Alana and I... [33:19] AQ, [33:21] Yeah, let's gift them. I'll gift them. Let's go. No, no, no, no, no. This is my gift. [33:27] I am going to buy four tickets. So, [33:30] Two to the first two people on LinkedIn that you got to, what I want you to do is this so that you're not messing around. I want you to write down what adaptability quotient means to you. [33:42] Tag Alana and I, the first two people, [33:45] I'm buying your ticket to the event. And same thing on Instagram. So the first two people on LinkedIn are,

[33:50] First two people on Instagram. It doesn't count if you don't write what it means to you. [33:54] and what you want to get out of this and hear out of this. [33:57] I'm going to buy four tickets. [34:00] I'm also going to be there as an audience attendee because I want to learn. I want to be a part of this, too. I'll bring a couple of my team members. So February 26th, if you want to hang out, me, Alana, I'll be there. [34:15] That's so cool. Let's go. Let's go. Let's go. [34:18] All right. So, [34:20] Rapid fire. [34:21] Top five questions. First one. [34:24] You're an avid hiker. [34:26] What's the food? What's your fuel when you come down from an amazing hike? What do you want to eat? [34:32] I need my coffee first. I'm a good latte person. So I need my latte art and all of this thing. But [34:45] Um, it's probably going to be, I don't know, like an acai or something, or maybe pasta. I don't know. Like I love, I'm a foodie, so I love food. [34:54] Unfortunately. [34:55] All right. So you're a foodie. What's your favorite Israeli dish? [35:01] I love hummus. I love shakshuka. I don't know. I love salads. I think the salads, like they're so fresh and everything is so yummy. Yeah. [35:11] You're a foodie and then you tell me your favorite dish is a salad. I'm sorry. We do make really good salads there. I know. I know. I know. What's the most surprising?

[35:23] Let's go. I'm there. [35:25] What's the most surprising lesson from the Air Force that still guides you today? [35:32] Oh my God, I think it's knowing my audience. I think it's learning that when I was giving feedback to people, I wasn't understanding. [35:43] That it's not about what I say, it's how I say it. And if I only knew them better, I would have said it differently. [35:50] Love it. Love it. Fourth question. What's one myth that [35:54] about success. [35:56] that people need to drop. [35:59] The four hour freaking work week. It does not exist, everybody. [36:05] If you want to, if you want success. [36:08] You freaking be ready to work hard. And if you want a four hour work week, [36:12] No worries, but anybody driven will work really, really hard and then have a little bit of four hour work week and then you're going to work hard again. There you go. Totally agree. [36:21] Totally agree. Last question. [36:25] When the story... [36:27] of Ilana Golan is written. [36:31] What's one word that you want to be in that story that defines you? [36:37] Impact. [36:39] Love it. [36:41] Love it, love it, love it. [36:44] I want to impact a lot of lives and make a lot of people smile. That's it. [36:49] Well, you do that already. And that truly is a word that defines you because you've impacted me. And again, I want you to know that and to feel that. Um,

[36:58] Everybody do me a huge favor. Leapacademy.com. Make sure you're going there. Alana has like, [37:06] Her and the team have free resources that are available to you that I promise are going to be life-changing. [37:11] You have the ability to work with her team as well. Like just a ton of amazing things that they're doing. If you are a leader, you're a leader. [37:19] If you were trying to change and really get out of your comfort zone, [37:24] There's only one place I'd recommend you go, and that is Leap Academy. So leapacademy.com. [37:28] Reach out today. [37:30] It means the world. Thank you, Mick. [37:32] You got it. And to all the viewers and listeners, remember, you're because... [37:37] is your superpower. [37:39] Go Unleash It. [37:41] That's another powerful conversation on Mick Unplugged. If this episode moved you, and I'm sure it did, follow the show wherever you listen. Share it with someone who needs that spark and leave a review so more people can find their because. I'm Rudy Rush. And until next time, stay driven, stay focused and stay unplugged. [38:05] you